Fluid heater



Feb. 4, 1936. w. H. ARMAcos'r FLUID HEATER Filed June 12, 1933 y TMJEH-f ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 4, 1936 UNITEB STTES OFFIQE FLUID HEATERWilbur H. Armacost, New York, N. Y., assigner to The SuperheaterCompany, New York, N. Y.

Application June 12, 1933, Serial No. 675,422

Claims.

My invention relates to iluid heaters and has as its principal objectthe production of a heater comparatively economical to build andconvenient to operate.

In order that my invention may be readily and lfully understood, I willnow describe in detail by Vway'of example and in connection with theaccompanying drawing a fluid heater in accordance with my invention andselected from a number of" possible embodiments thereof. In the drawing.

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of a fluid heater.

Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation on the line 2-2 'of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a sectional detail illustrating one of the closures appearingin Fig. 1.

The heater illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 comprising a gas pass I0 throughwhich heating gases ow vertically when the apparatus is in use. Pass II)is bounded by walls two of which appear at I2 and I 4in Fig. 1 onopposite sides of pass I0, and the other two walls of which appear at I6and I8 of Fig. 2.

In the arrangement illustrated, fluid to be heated is introduced throughpipes 28, 28 into an intake header 22. From header 22 such iuid owsthrough serpentine units 24, 24 to an intermediate header 25 and thencethrough other units 24 and intermediate headers 25 to outlet header 26.From header 26 it is discharged by pipes 28, 28. The units 24 haveindividual elements 36, 30 lying substantially horizontal, adjacentelements 30 being connected in pairs at their one ends by return bends32, 32 and at their other ends by return bends 34, 34. The units 24 aresupported at one end by the headers 22, 25 and 26 the ends of whichextend into the fixed walls I6 and I8 and rest thereon at 35, 35 whilethe units 24 are supported at their other ends by beams 36, 36. Some ofthe units rest directly on beams 36, 36 and the others are suspendedtherefrom by suitable connections 38, 38. To transmit the weight fromone loop of a unit to the next and so to the beams 36, I Weld spacers39, 36 between loops of the units 30.

In order that units 24 may be readily accessible, doorways 4U and 42 areleft in the opposite walls I2 and I4. To prevent the heating gases fromflowing into such doorways and at least partially by-passing the units24, I have provided special wall sections at the inner ends of suchdoorways. As appears clearly in Fig. 1, the headers 22, 25 and 26 occupya portion of the area or section of doorway 40 along its inner end and Ihave supplied removable plates 44, 44 intermediate the headers forclosing ou the remainder of the inner end vof such doorway when the gaspass I0 is in use. I prefer, further, to utilize the plates 44 forsupporting the return bends 34 and for this "5 purpose have shown suchreturn bends as provided with projecting pins 46, 46 which enter sockets48, 48 in plates 44 to thereby support the intermedi-ate elements 30 ofunits 24 along theV side of the umts adjacent the headers.

The return bends 32 along the other side of units 34 are designed topermit cleaning the elements 36, the arrangement being shown in detailin Fig. 3. Each return bend 32 has for this purpose a projecting throat50 provided with a 15 seat 52 at its outer end which is normally closed'by a member 54. For holding the members 54 in place -against theinternal pressure within the units 34, I have provided a novelarrangement comprising a sleeve 56 provided with internal threads 56aadapted to turn on to the external threads 56a on the throat 5U. At itsouter end, the sleeve 56 also has internal threads cooperating with theexternal threads of a pressure applying member 58 whose aXis is coaxialWith that of 25 throat 58 and the closure member 54 and may be screweddown to contact with the member 54 to hold it iirmly in place. Testshave shown that the arrangement just described has the capacity 30 ofremaining tight under sudden changes of temperature. A return bendhaving the closure arrangement above described applied thereto may havecold Water poured on the closure arrangement without causing it to leak.This is a very severe test and I attribute the success of thearrangement illustrated in withstanding such test to the fact that thesleeve 56 has an ample amount of surface in engagement with the throat58 so that the sleeve maintains the same temperature as the throat whilethe pressure member 58 also h-as an ample amount of engaging surfacewith the sleeve and thereby is maintained at the temperature of thesleeve and therefore of the throat. Therefore, the parts once havingbeen put under such pressure to make a tight joint at the seat 52, thereis small chance for such pressure to be diminished by changes intemper-ature of the parts to cause a leak, or for the parts to beoverstressed by similar changes so that leakage will occur when theparts regain the same temperature.

In certain classes of apparatus, the heating gases ordinarily carrycorrosive substances which are apt to settle on the threads of closurearrangements and damage them. Ordinarily,

therefore, the closure arrangements for cleanout structures in apparatusemploying serpentine units have wall plates through which the returnbends of the units project and packing to prevent the gases from passingbetween such plates and the elements to the outsides of the plates andthere attacking the closure arrangements. Such a structure iscomparatively expensive'to install and also requires expense formaintenance to insure that such packed joints are maintained tightagainst the gases. It is clear from Fig. 1 that I have omitted any suchplates and packed joints, the closure arrangements and return bends 32lying in the gas stream. In the arrangement illustrated, I am enabled todo this by providing packing adapted to protect the ends of the threadson the throats 50 and on the pressure member 58. As shown, in Fig. 3,throat 58 has an external collar 60 thereon, and the sleeve 56 iscountersunk at its inner end to receive collar 68'and to provide apocket 6I for receiving compressible asbestos packing 62 or itsequivalent between collar 60 and the bottom of pocket 6|. At its outerend, the opening for the bolt 58 is also countersunk at 65 to provideroom for a body of packing material 64 similar to 62 on throat 5U. Theouter end of bolt 58 also has a collar or enlargement 66 thereon,adapted to i'lt in countersink 65. It will be obvious that the body ofpacking 62 will be able to protect it when sleeve 56 is screwed on thethroat 50, and'that,

similarly, the packing 64 will protect the opening when bolt 58 isscrewed into sleeve 56. In order to provide convenient access to theends of the elements 30 having theclean-.out throats 50 thereon, thedoorway 42 is closed adjacent the return bends 32 by readily removabledoors 68, 68. It will be seen further, that preferably the door- Ways 40and 42 are-covered at their outer ends by suitable platesV 18 and 12respectively which can be easily taken down and replaced.

While the arrangement illustrated herein has al1 the clean-out openingsin the gas path, I do not limit myself to this in all cases, as Iconsider it within the scope of my invention to place vpart of theclean-out openings in the gas path and to protect the other part by apacked wall plate. It will be understood further, that I wish theappended claims to be construed broadly in other respects wherever theirterms so permit.

What I claim is: l. A heater havingV a substantially vertical gas pass,a pair cf headers one above the other at one side of said pass, aserpentine pipe unit having its ends connected into the said headers andits elements substantially horizontal and. lying in said pass, a platelying between said headers and forming a wall section on one side ofsaid gas pass, means for supporting said unit in part from said plate,and means forming a wall for said gas pass opposite the said headers andplate.

2. A heater having two tube bundles each including a plurality of loops,wall supports for said loops at the one end thereof, a beam intermediatesaid bundles, vthe lower tube of one bundle resting on said beam and theupper tube of the other bundle suspended from said beam, and meansconnecting each two of said loops of both said bundles so as to transferto said beams such of the weight thereof as is not carried by said wallsupports.

3. A heater as set forth in claim 2 and in which the wall supportsinclude plates in a wall formed in part by headers for the tube bundles,such plates having sockets, and pins on the ends of the loops nearer theheaders for entering said sockets.

4. A heater having a plurality of spaced horizontal tube bundles eachincluding a plurality of spaced loops, cleanouts at the one end of Vsaidloops, a beam intermediate two of said bundles and acting to support theends of both bundles having said cleanouts thereon, and mechanicalconnections betweenV each two adjacent loops of a given bundle wherebythe loops are maintained 'at the desired spacing at the ends supportedby said beam.

5. A heater having a plurality of horizonta tube bundles in a verticalflue, each such bundle including a plurality of spaced loops, spacedheaders at one end of each of said bundles through which the fluid to beheated enters and. leaves Vthe bundle, wall plates intermediatesaidAheaders along one side of said ue, cleanouts at the ends of said loopsopposite said headers, means providing ready access to said cleanouts, abeam intermediate two tube bundles and supporting both such bundles atpoints nearer said cleanouts than said headers, and mechanicalconnections between external surfaces of the loops of said bundles inthe vertical line near said beam.

WILBUR H. ARMACOST. y

